Survey reveals passengers like using technology

Published on : Friday, November 11, 2016

Airline passengers in Brazil are having a better travel experience as they increasingly use technology along their journey. This is according to a survey released by global air transport IT provider, SITA, which reports that 81% of passengers in Brazil are happy – a jump from 72% last year.

The 2016 SITA Passenger IT Trends Survey was carried out at eight international airports in Brazil that together manage 63% of all the country’s passenger traffic. It shows that Brazil’s passengers are very positive about using self-service technology, including online and mobile booking and check-in, and more than half (51%) use it when available.

Airline passengers across the globe are so comfortable with technology today that they are choosing to use it rather than interacting with people. This is clear in Brazil where SITA reports 96% of passengers carry at least one mobile device, just above the global average of 95%. They also score highly on an index of online and mobile service usage in their everyday lives at 6.9 out of 10.

Over the past year in Brazil, there has been a significant jump in the use of mobiles for booking, check-in and getting a board pass and the appetite is growing. Looking ahead, passengers expect to nearly double their use of these mobile technologies predicting rises from 11% to 21% for booking; 14% to 28% for check-in and 16% to 32% for boarding passes.

Elbson Quadros, SITA Vice President, Brazil, said: “Airlines and airports across Brazil have been investing in technology to help manage increasing numbers of passengers while also improving their journey. The benefits are clear to see – passengers are happier as more and more of them use self-service technologies along the journey.

“These tech-savvy passengers are happy to use their mobile devices for their journey. It is no surprise then that they are looking for new services – 92% would like to get notifications about their baggage sent to their mobiles. With the implementation of baggage tracking by the airlines in line with the IATA Resolution 753, meeting this need is possible in the near future.”

The behavior of four different types of passengers is analyzed in SITA’s report. The Careful Planner, Pampered, Hyper-Connected and Open-Minded Adventurer profiles each uses technology in different ways. Brazil has a high proportion (41%) of ‘careful planners’ compared to the global average of 34%. These passengers plan ahead to make their journey as easy as possible and use technology such as online check-in so they can double check everything in advance of arrival at the airport to avoid any negative experiences.

To help illustrate the differences among travelers SITA has made it possible for people to find out their own passenger profile. Anyone can complete this short online form to find out what kind of traveler they are and compare their personal behavior to others from around the world.

This is the 11th edition of the SITA/ATW Passenger IT Trends Survey. It was conducted with more than 9,000 passengers from 19 countries across the Americas, Asia, Europe, the Middle East and Africa representing almost three-quarters of global passenger traffic.